Ghana defeated Mali 2-0 in their last group to game advance to the semifinals of the 2019 Under-23 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) Thursday night.
Ghana needed to beat their West Africa counterpart before they could secure qualification, having failed to pick a win in their first two matches in Group A.
Kwabena Owusu came off the bench to record brace with just 16 minutes to end the game at the Cairo International Stadium.
The Malians dominated the early stages of the tie but failed to find the back of the net as Ghana goalkeeper Kwame Baah made some superlative saves.
The first half ended even.
Coach Ibrahim Tanko, after recess, brought on Kwabena Owusu for Robin Polley in search of the opener.
Owusu put the Meteors ahead in the 74th minute by connecting beautifully a nice pass from the boot of right-back Kingsley Fobi.
On the 85th minute mark, the Cordoba attacker snatched his second goal with a sublime finish. He stole the ball from the feet of a Malian defender after Habib had flicked on, controlled nicely into the penalty area before unleashing a shot which sent the goalkeeper the wrong way.
The win thus qualifies Ghana to the next stage alongside hosts Egypt who beat Cameroon 2-1 in the other group game.
Ghana edged Cameroon with a one-goal advantage after both sides tied on 4 points.
Watch highlights of the match:
Highlights 📽️
🇬🇭 Ghana qualify to the semi-finals after defeating 🇲🇱 Mali 2-0 #TotalAFCONU23 pic.twitter.com/1LRHWNND5n
— CAF (@CAF_Online) November 14, 2019
